Overview

Dell has never exactly been a brand that gamers gravitate towards. While we have seen some very high quality products out of Dell in the past few years, including the new XPS 13, and people have loved their Ultrasharp monitor line, neither of these target gamers directly. Dell acquired Alienware in 2006 in order to enter the gaming market and continues to make some great products, but they retain the Alienware branding. It seems to me a gaming-centric notebook with just the Dell brand could be a hard sell.

However, that's exactly what we have today with the Dell Inspiron 15 7000. Equipped with an Intel Core i5-6300HQ and NVIDIA GTX 960M for $799, has Dell created a contender in the entry-level gaming notebook race?

For years, the Inspiron line has been Dell's entry level option for notebooks and subsequently has a questionable reputation as far as quality and lifespan. With the Inspiron 15 7000 being the most expensive product offering in the Inspiron line though, I was excited to see if it could sway my opinion of the brand.

Lenovo chose the third most popular password of 2015 to secure its ShareIT for Windows application and for bonus points have made it hard coded, which there is utterly no excuse for in this day and age. If you aren't familiar with the software, it is another Dropbox type app which allows you to share files and folders, apparently with anyone now that this password ridiculousness has been exposed. As you read on at The Inquirer the story gets even better, files are transferred in the clear without any encryption and it even creates an open WiFi hotspot for you, to make sharing your files even easier for all and sundry. There are more than enough unintentional vulnerabilities in software and hardware, we really don't need companies programming them in on purpose. If you have ShareIT, you should probably DumpIT.

***Update***

We received word that there is an updated version of ShareIT available for those who do use the app and would like to continue to do so.

They can also access the latest versions which are posted and available for download on the Lenovo site. The updated Android version of SHAREit is also available for download on the Google Play store. Please visit the Lenovo security advisory page for the latest information and updates: (https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/product_security/len_4058)

"HOLY COW! Lenovo may have lost its mind. The firm has created vulnerabilities in ShareIT that could be exploited by anyone who can guess that '12345678' could be a password."

A little over a year ago, Lenovo purchased Motorola from Google for $2.91 billion USD. They did not acquire the vast majority of the patents, and they did not purchase Motorola Research. It was assumed that Lenovo wanted the Motorola brand and their connections with global cell carriers. Your hardware means very little without a network provider to sell, support, and connect it with their infrastructure.

Today, Motorola / Lenovo announced that the Motorola brand will be deprecated. They will still operate within Lenovo as their own division, but the consumer-facing brand will be Lenovo, and it will run their entire mobile effort. The company will continue to make nods to Motorola, however. The stylized “M” logo will remain an identifiable trademark, and their line of high-end devices will be given the “Moto” name.

This doesn't feel like an admission of failure on Lenovo's part. I have the impression that they are trying to assimilate Motorola into their organization, but that makes me wonder what they wanted in the first place. They can use the connections and the workforce that they acquired, which is highly valuable, and they can use the brand in subtle ways (as they are). Really, I'm just confused whether Lenovo changed their mind about the Motorola brand, or if this was expected from the start.

The ideacentre 610S is a tiny PC with a triangular shape, designed for the living room (or any situation where a small-footprint computer is needed). But this is more than just a PC, as the 610S is bundled with a TI DLP micro projector.

So what sort of components can be found in a PC / projector combo that combine to stand just a few inches tall? Lenovo provided these specifications (which unfortunately do not list the exact dimensions):

In addition to the 35W Intel processors a desktop GPU (the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti) is available as an option for better graphics performance. I/O is good for a small form-factor system like this with 4 USB 3.0 ports, HDMI, and Gigabit LAN, and there is integrated 802.11ac wireless.

The micro projector is a separate device that can be powered through contacts at the top of the 610S (or via AC). It uses a WirelessHD connection to the system and also has an HDMI input, and outputs a 720p image at 220 lumens at up to 100 inches.

The Lenovo ideacentre 610S will retail for $849 with projector included, but won’t be available until June 2016.

Lenovo has announced the Y900, a dedicated gaming machine which features the current high-end mobile CPUs and GPUs, as well as configurable overclocking.

Exact overclocking numbers are not yet available, but this will be controlled through software to allow users to select a higher performance level. The system can be configured with up to a quad-core 6th gen Intel Core i7 processor and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M, and up to a massive 64 GB of DD4 memory - though with 4 SoDIMM slots it will be easy to upgrade the memory later. Storage options include PCIe SSDs (1 slot) and traditional SATA 6.0 Gb/s drives, and there is also USB 3.1 Type-C as well as HDMI 2.0 among the I/O.

Lenovo has unveiled a new Business Edition of the Yoga 900 2-in-1 notebook, which adds a TPM (Trusted Platform Module) security chipset for those that require the added security. Lenovo points out that “large enterprises rank security features even higher than ease of use”, and if you require TPM it’s nice to have a user-friendly option like the Yoga available.

“The YOGA 900 Business Edition is instantly recognizable as something different. Always a step ahead by testing perceptions of what a laptop should be, the YOGA 900 delivers the performance you need to work and play in any situation: LAPTOP, STAND, TENT and TABLET modes. The ultimate blend of personal desires and work requirements.”

The notebook features a 3200 x 1800 (QHD+) display which Lenovo says they have “tuned for brighter & more vibrant images”, and is powered by 6th gen Intel Core processors.

Here is a rundown of the key features from Lenovo:

2.9lbs and 0.58” thick

Up to Intel 6th Gen Core i7 vPro

QHD+ (3200 x 1800) IPS display

Up to 512GB SSD

Up to 16GB memory

TPM security chipset

Pricing was not revealed, and the YOGA 900 Business Edition will be available by special order beginning in February.